A01 chaf6542 06 se fm indd

Is a distinct digital marketing plan 

necessary?

‘A separate digital marketing plan is 

not necessary as part of the marketing 

planning process – digital marketing 

can and should be integrated into 

existing marketing plans.’

Debate 8.1

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Part 2  Strategy and applications

clear objectives and strategies showing how the digital presence should contribute to the 

sales and marketing process. Specific initiatives that are required such as search marketing, 

email marketing or features of a website redesign can be specified. 

 In the longer term, once an organisation has successfully defined its approaches to 

Internet marketing, it is likely that a separate Internet marketing strategy or digital market-

ing plan  will not  need to be developed each year since the Internet can be considered as any 

other communications medium and integrated into existing communications plans.   

  Situation  analysis 

 The aim of situation analysis is to understand the current and future environment in which 

the company operates in order that the strategic objectives are realistic in light of what is hap-

pening in the marketplace.  Figure   8.8    shows the inputs from situation analysis that inform 

the digital marketing plan. These mainly refer to a company’s external environment.   

  Situation  analysis